'Great American Love Songs' explores six decades of pop music

Joe Meyers

Published 12:11 pm, Tuesday, January 15, 2013

Photo: Contributed Photo

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The Park City Players will present "Great American Love Songs" at Bridgeport's Bijou Theatre on Friday, Jan. 18 and Saturday, Jan. 19. The show examines love in all of its forms through pop songs spanning more than 60 years. less

The Park City Players will present "Great American Love Songs" at Bridgeport's Bijou Theatre on Friday, Jan. 18 and Saturday, Jan. 19. The show examines love in all of its forms through pop songs spanning more ... more

Photo: Contributed Photo

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Alec Ciambriello of Shelton, Dan Foster of Seymour, and Gino Palumbo of Ansonia (left to right) rehearse a scene from "Great American Love Songs," a song and dance revue that will be presented at the Bijou Theatre in Bridgeport on Friday, Jan. 18 and Saturday, Jan. 19. less

Alec Ciambriello of Shelton, Dan Foster of Seymour, and Gino Palumbo of Ansonia (left to right) rehearse a scene from "Great American Love Songs," a song and dance revue that will be presented at the Bijou ... more

Photo: Contributed Photo

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Musical director Bill D'Andrea (at the piano) rehearses pop tunes from Frank Sinatra to Bruno Mars for the song andf dance revue "Great American Love Songs" that is being presented by the Park City Players at Bridgeport's Bijou Theatre on Friday, Jan. 18 and Saturday, Jan. 19. less

Musical director Bill D'Andrea (at the piano) rehearses pop tunes from Frank Sinatra to Bruno Mars for the song andf dance revue "Great American Love Songs" that is being presented by the Park City Players at ... more

Photo: Contributed Photo

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Musical director Bill D'Andrea runs the cast of "Great American Love Songs" through one of the 30 pop tunes - spanning 60 years - that will be presented at Bridgeport's Bijou Theatre on Friday, Jan. 18 and Saturday, Jan. 19. less

Musical director Bill D'Andrea runs the cast of "Great American Love Songs" through one of the 30 pop tunes - spanning 60 years - that will be presented at Bridgeport's Bijou Theatre on Friday, Jan. 18 and ... more

Photo: Contributed Photo

'Great American Love Songs' explores six decades of pop music

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When you hear that a show is called "Great American Love Songs" you might think that it's a celebration of old-fashioned romantic love.

But that's not what director Nancy Lessard is planning for the song and dance revue that will be playing at Bridgeport's Bijou Theatre on Friday, Jan. 18, and Saturday, Jan. 19.

"We're presenting love stories, but it's about love in all of its forms," Lessard said before a rehearsal last week. "It has romantic love, but it's also about friendship and familial love."

The 90-minute show will consist of a series of mini-love stories, each powered by pop music spanning the past 60 years, from Frank Sinatra to Bruno Mars.

"We're including The Beatles, too, which some people criticized because of the show's title, but they were such a hot item here that we wanted them in," Lessard said of the way that the British pop group's music served as the soundtrack for so many American love stories in the 1960s and beyond.

Bill D'Andrea, who worked on the Players' recent production of "You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown," is the musical director of "Great American Love Songs."

"He's done new (arrangements) for 30 different songs," Lessard said of the tunes that will be performed by a cast of 12 singer-actors.

There's a real-life mother-daughter love story woven into the show in the form of Lessard's daughter, Emily, who came home from her studies at Elon University in North Carolina to choreograph the revue.

"I don't want to cry," Lessard said, starting to get genuinely choked up and then laughing, when she talked about her daughter working on the show and also contributing ideas on the importance of non-romantic friendship.

"She emailed me about her own hopes for romantic love, but that she knows that the ones who will always be there are her three best friends. You should never give up your girlfriends," the director said.

"I'm so thrilled that she has been able to do it. She's on the Dean's list so it's OK," Lessard said, laughing, of her daughter taking a brief break from college to create the dances for the show.

The 12 performers in "Great American Love Songs" are contributing more than their singing and dancing talents -- they helped to create the revue with Lessard.

"We actually gave them the task of coming up with the love stories that would go with the songs. We knew what songs we wanted to use and what order they would be in, but they contributed the stories," she said.

Lessard started to tear up again when she talked about a member of the ensemble contributing a story derived from her own relationship with her grandmother.

"I think the show will have widespread appeal because there will be so many generations represented and music from so many eras," she said.

"Originally, we were thinking in terms of a Big-Band-ish, Rainbow Room style of show, but I think we've come up with something much better," the director added.